Computers have taken over as the vital link to all home entertainment options.
Computers are fast replacing dedicated components, becoming the central hub for all entertainment options. You come home tired in the evening, longing to put your aching feet up and just relax, listening to soothing music, or perhaps watching the latest DVD/programme on your flat screen TV. Or alternatively, you may wish to surf the internet or play an interactive game on your computer.
Just imagine, if instead of fiddling around with different equipment, switches and endless buttons, you can do all of this by just switching on one single unit — your computer.
Don't be surprised. Given the latest technologies available today, enjoying all these entertainment options from your computer is a cinch. We are in the age of convergence — when everything to do with entertainment can be had in a desktop or a laptop you have at home. Your PC, TV, stereo and portable entertainment devices are all coming together into one central unit.
Multi-tasking
Want to play the latest interactive game or listen to your MP3 while downloading a movie to watch on your flat-screen? How about chatting with friends online while you burn a DVD? Today's multimedia systems not only multi-task, but also take away the hassle of it all, while saving space.
When music and television went digital there was always the possibility of getting it all under one control centre. The race towards making your computer the central link to all your entertainment options is only a natural progression in the digital chain.
It's all about digital content and how it's being shared. It has already invaded our homes — movies, television and music have all gone digital. The missing link thus far is making TVs and stereos communicate with digital gadgets. But it's the connection between the PC and the TV that's really going to change the way families are entertained because together they are likely to become an entertainment hub for the entire home.
Imagine having a single remote control that can change TV channels, play music, start a slide show of family photos as well as play videos, whether they are the latest releases or home movies of the family vacation. The output devices could be any or all TVs in the home, the computer monitor, stereo or all of them simultaneously.
With a little bit of ingenuity, some of these items can even be shared with friends and family in other cities.
Driving force
The driving forces behind the computerised living room are a couple of technologies many consumers have already embraced. Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) home network that allows all your entertainment components to connect to one another wirelessly.
The second is peer-to-peer networking, which has led millions to download and store digital versions of songs on their computers.
The new computer entertainment systems will enable users to store and access much more than just music.
Giants such as Intel and Microsoft are already putting out new equipment on the market that function as your entertainment hub.
Microsoft has launched Windows XP Media Center software, a user-friendly system that allows you to scroll down lists of entertainment options that appear on the TV and click on what you want. The computer acts as an all-in-one DVD/VCR/stereo console that can record and play TV shows, movies and music.
Adding a PC to your home theatre lets you access media files — from digital photos to videos to MP3s — all from the comfort of your couch (almost any Media Center PC comes bundled with a Media Center remote). If you think mixing a PC into your home theatre sounds good, you're not alone. Increasingly, companies have started selling living room-friendly systems. They look less like a standard mid-tower PC and more like a high-end home-theatre component, and most run nearly silently and use Microsoft's Media Center OS.
Endless possibilities
According to industry experts, in the future we will probably have a home entertainment server — a powerful computer that will collect our movies, videos, and music at a central point, then distribute them to TV, stereos, and other computers throughout the house.
You'll probably be able to buy one at the local electronics store in a few years. Or you can start building a similar system now.
Today's PCs already pack in a lot of punch. Huge memory, 5.1 sound card and high-class speakers are getting more common by the day. By adding a TV card you can convert your LCD TV to your computer monitor-cum-movie screen. LCD TVs with a DVI connector can act as the computer monitor.
Imagine the possibilities. This configuration could replace your television, your CD/DVD player and even your music system. All of these devices will be combined into one unit! You can record your favourite shows, pause live TV, watch movies, listen to your tunes - all from one dedicated unit, something you could only dream of five years ago.
With this setup, you could also watch movies and listen to music directly from the internet. Through iTunes, you could instantly download music and listen to a huge selection of radio stations.
Plus you can still use your computer for all the office work and gaming it performed before!
All the functions that we used to have to build separate devices for are now nothing more than simple inputs or outputs from our computers.
Digital convergence has arrived.
